Steering appliance.



PATENTED APR. 23, 1907.

vNo. 851,534.

D. O. LEWIS. STEERING APPLIANCE. APPLICATION FILED BEPT. 1, 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

jar/@7675) le was PATENTED APR. 23, 1907.

' D. O. LEWIS. STEERING APPLIANCE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 1. 1905.

2 SHEETS- SHEET 2.

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Tojdll whom it may concern: Be it known that I, DEAN C. LEWIS, of

DEAN C. LEWIS, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

STEERING APPLIANCE.

pastime.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 23, 1907.

Application filed September 1, 1905. Serial No. 276.684.

- Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Steering Appliances, of which the following 1s 'a specification.

ThlS invention relates to steering appliances and has for its object to provide a device.

mechanism which will be quick in operation and will be at the same time not liable to accidental derangement.

It is particularly adapt-ed for use with motor vehicles, although it may be applied in other relations, and is constructed so that. after having once been set by hand, there is no liability of the position of the parts being changed by the resistance of the road or objects striking the steering wheels of the vehicle and intending to move them out of position in which they are set.

The referred embodiment of the invention is i lustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 represents a central section of the Fig. 2 represents a sectional elevation taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the sliding blocks. Figs. 4 and 5 represent respectively an elevation and a section, one of the adjusting screws used to adjust the guideways of the blocks and of the locking pin therefor. Fig. 6 shows the device as applled to a motor vehicle.

Referring to the drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same parts in all the views, a represents a casing, into which from one end projects a shaft 1), which extends upwardly and is adapted to have connected upon its end a wheel c or lever, by which it may be operated, the shaft therefore constituting the actuator of the steering device.

The portion of the shaft contained within the casing or housing a is threaded and engages complementary screw threads in sliding blocks cl and e, which are mounted to slide longitudinally in'the casing. In order to give the device the minimum length, these blocks are arranged side by side, and each, instead of wholly surrounding the sc rew shaft, is formed on the side ad acent the screw with a groove, which receives approximately half the screw, and which is provided with threadsenga 'ng with the threads of the screw. These bib cks are held in en- .ing through one of t gagcment with the screw shaft by gibs or guide-ways mounted at the sides of the casing and adjustable toward and away from the screw shaft by means of adjusting screws 72, which are threaded through the adjacent walls of the casing and bear at their ends against the sides of the blocks. B means of the screws the guide ways may e pressed with greater or less force against the blocks;

to hold them with an desired amount of frictional resistance ant to preventlooseness which have notches i in their sides, and vadjacent the periphery of each screw head is a pin 3' set in a socket y" in'the casing wall and pressed by a spring is outwardly so as to project into one of the notches. --By pressing the pin against the spring 'it can be disengaged and the screw readily turned.

It is desirable that the blocks d and a should be caused to reciprocate simultane ously in opposite direct-ions when thescrew shaft b is turned, and in order to produce this result I provide the blocks with threads extending in different directions, one of them having a right hand'and the other a left hand internal thread. The single screw which cngages both blocks is provided with a pl1irahty of threads extending in different directions and occupying the same portion of projections1 l which are arranged in hehcal nes about the screw and into the spaces between which project the corres ondingly shaped ribs of the internal threads formed upon the sliding blocks.

It will be evident that thus when the screw is turned, one of the blocks is caused to rise and the other to descend, passing by each other in their movement.

The second shaft m lprojects into the easjo1ned to the slides by connections which permit the motion of these slides to be transmitted to the shaft and to be" converted into rotation, such connections consisting of the bar n fixed upon the shaft within the casing and having arms projecting, upon each side different faces of the studs I act upon the different blocks, and

e side walls, and is IIO ' socket connection with the link r, which ex tends to the laterally shiftable road wheels 8 of the vehicle, this. connection consisting of a stud; having the spherical head i held in a socket in a n'ttin'g u at the end of the link.

I as the screwshaft is rotated, the slide blocks d and e produce equal and oppositeistresses link r and suitable well-known connections upon the bar n, causing theshaft m to rotate 1n one direction and thereby, through the with the steering road wheels of the Vehicle,

. to swing such wheels laterally. to one sidc or the other. Any external force applied't-o the wheels 8 tending to movethem-out ofthe position in which they are placed, encounters the resistance of the screw threads against'the blocks-d and e, which absolutely prevent movement of the blocks, and thus dangerof the Wheels being shifted by other means than the actuator b is eliminated; 'lhe screw shaft 7) may-be made hollow' soas to permit the rode: to extend through the same and through the end of the casing, which rod may be conne'ctedwith thesparlging deviceor the throttle valve of the engine forcon trolling the same, v

. Itis obvious that'other uses may be found for this device besides that above described,

as it might readily be applied for steering a boat, inwhich case the rudder postwould take the place of the shaft m" and the helm would be connected to the screw shaft 5.

Various modifications of the device with constructions other than those described may bemade without departing from this invention, such as providin a single blockinstead.

of a plurality otbloc is engaged -with the threadand connected to the shaft m, or the threads may be formed u on 'different'parts' of the screw and the bloc s mounted .thereon, one above f Iclalm v 1. A steerlng'gear comprising ascrew'havthe other.

ing right and left hand threads, apair of independent slides arranged on op osite'sides of the screw, one having a right and and the other a left hand internal screw thread engagmotion from the slides to the shaft.

2. A steering -gear comprising a screw having a plurahty of threads, blocks engaged therewith and adapted to be reciprocated i by rotation thereor, a casing enclosing the It Will be evident from thefforegoing that screw and blocks, and guides or gibs on which the blocks. slide adjustahly mounted between the blocks and the adjacent sides of:

therewithand adapted to be reciprocatedby rotation thereof, a casing enclosin screw and blocks, guides or glbs on whirfii blocks slide 'adjustably' mounted between theblock's and the adjacent sides ofI-the" the the casir g, and, adjustirg screws threaded into the casing and bearing ag'ainstsaid guides.

4. A steering gear comprising a screw hav ing a plurality of threads, blocks engaged therewith and adapted to be reciprocated by rotation thereof, a casing enclosing the screw andblocks, guides or gibs on which the blocks slide adjustably mounted between the blocks and the -adjacent' sides of the casirg,. adjusting screws having notched heads threaded thrbugh the sides of the easing and bearing against said guides,-and

locking pins mounted adjacent-said screws and "arranged to project into the notches in the heads thereof. 5. In combination with'a steering gear comprising a casing-having hearings in line, a hollow screw shaft in one of said bearings, blocks slidingly mounted in the casing in engagement'with said screw, and a steering shaft linked to said blocks for oscillation thereby, an en'gine controlling rod passing through the hollow screw shaft and casing, and extending through the alined bearing in the latter. i

In testimony whereof I have'a'llixed my signature, in presence of two witnessesi DEAN o. LEWIS.

Witnesses:

DAVID AIHAMMoNn, JOHN J Sauna.

ICO 

